09 February 2014 1:44 AM

Don't be duped, Demon Gove's a softie inside

My old friend Michael Gove would do well as a professional magician. He is so clever at distracting people that hardly anyone ever notices what he is really doing.

Amid huge clouds of green smoke, and the noise of thunderflashes, he stands there wearing his cruel heavy-rimmed glasses and posing as the nation’s Demon Headmaster.

Teachers supposedly tremble. Badly behaved schoolchildren supposedly bow their heads and learn their times tables, before hurrying to Bible classes.

Actually, they don’t. Mr Gove is not a conservative. In education and other matters, he seeks to follow the (almost wholly useless) agenda of the Blair creature, whom Mr Gove has long admired, almost as much as Wendi Deng, former wife of Rupert Murdoch, admires him.

For Mr Gove, it’s not Mr Blair’s piercing blue eyes or his ‘good legs and butt’ that do the trick. It’s his stylish way with bombers, tanks and troops, plus his agenda of equality, diversity, and bureaucracy.

Back in February 2003, Mr Gove penned a love letter to the then Premier which is almost as embarrassing as Wendi’s girlish jottings.

Beneath the headline ‘I can’t fight my feelings any more: I love Tony’, Mr Gove gushed: ‘All I can say looking at Mr Blair now is, what’s not to like?’

He described Mr Blair as ‘right and brave’ on university fees, ‘impressive’ and ‘braver in some respects than Maggie was’ on Iraq, ‘resolute’ in his stand against strikers, and ‘correct’ on asylum policy.

In fact, he has even been holding meetings with Mr Blair, who is also privately admired by the Prime Minister and the Chancellor (he refers to him as ‘The Master’). His entirely empty row last week over the removal of the Blairite Sally Morgan from the chairmanship of Ofsted is privately described by Tories as what it was – ‘a staged smash-up’.

It is yet another pretext for a fake squabble between Tories and Liberal Democrats, who don’t really disagree but must now pretend to do so to win back lost voters.

As for the schools, they need what they have needed since they were actively ruined by Labour and the Tories between 1965 and 1980. They need the restoration of the authority of teachers, the resumption of tried and effective methods of teaching (especially of reading), and the reintroduction of selection by ability rather than wealth.

As for the opening up of the private sector to state pupils, nothing could be better than the scores of Direct Grant schools that used to do this so well.

They were spitefully destroyed by Labour 40 years ago, and not reinstated during 18 years of Tory rule. But all these things are either illegal or unthinkable in the Blairite universe, with its useless, destructive targets, its incessant tests, its Stalinist inspections, and its stealth selection, available to the wealthy and cunning.

Under the Blair-Gove arrangement, education favours the rich and the sharp-elbowed, and leaves the bright child of a poor home struggling far, far behind.

So instead, Mr Gove makes another speech, about writing lines, or the wonders of traditional history, or the Bible, or whatever it is. And The Guardian newspaper attacks him for it. And nothing happens.

It’s good soap opera. It entertains and diverts. But it is a big fat fake, and if you go on being fooled by it you will get the country you deserve.

►► When will coroners notice the apparent correlation between suicide and ‘antidepressant’ drugs? We will never know if this is significant until it is centrally recorded.

This is very difficult, partly because coroners often don’t ask about it, and also because many suicides are not recorded as such thanks to modern ‘narrative verdicts’.

Read any inquest report carefully, and almost always you will find the dead person was taking these pills, which are known, especially in the US, to carry this risk.

The West Bank needs Scarlett, not dogma

One of my favourite people in the Middle East is a witty and wry Arab citizen of Israel (yes, they do exist and very interesting they are too). On my last visit to Jerusalem, he drove me up to Ramallah through the wearisome security barriers that now divide Israeli territory from the West Bank.

And he sighed: ‘Oh, for the good old days before we had “Peace” .’ What he meant was that, until the world began seeking to solve the Israeli-Arab question, the two peoples lived reasonably happily together.

Arabs worked in Israel, crossing freely backwards and forwards and supporting their families instead of relying on political handouts.

Incredibly, Israelis used to go to Gaza (now behind an impassable barrier) for its beach-front nightlife (now suppressed with Islamic ferocity).

Actually, some of this sensible human pragmatism has recently begun to return. Israeli settlers help Arabs decode the Hebrew labels in a cut-price supermarket on the road to Hebron. Ramallah’s town centre, once gruesomely adorned with the dangling corpses of alleged collaborators, is now a pleasant spot for an evening out. It has a shopping mall with a cinema multiplex, just as Israeli towns do.

This is why I side with Scarlett Johansson, right, and against Oxfam, which has condemned her for promoting an Israeli-owned factory in the West Bank.

She is right. Helping to promote and sustain the normal things of life – work, homes, ordinary pleasure, mutual interdependence – is the road to peace. Oxfam’s dogmatic utopian desires lead to murder and terror. Oxfam was not founded to preach politics, but to relieve hunger. It should go back to doing that, and I for one won’t give it another penny until it does.

BBC 'neutral' in bogus war

What should BBC impartiality cover? Is strict neutrality between our (identical) political parties enough? Or should its staff avoid taking sides on other big controversies?

I ask because the Today programme presenter Justin Webb last week wrote a newspaper article on the so-called ‘War on Drugs’, giving full weight to polls and figures which support the view that there is a ‘war’, and that it is failing, and saying, among other things, that ‘on cannabis the game is surely over’.

Funny that he didn’t mention that (for instance) first-time cannabis offenders form a tiny proportion of prisoners in the US, and that the funky American magazine Rolling Stone recently dismissed as a ‘myth’ the claim that the USA’s prisons are full of people convicted for marijuana possession.

I can supply Mr Webb with plenty more information of this sort – if he wants it. But does he?

►► This column’s ‘I told you so’ department would like to point out that a month ago I attacked ‘the grandiose quango called the Environment Agency’, adding: ‘The Agency’s great at issuing statements, but does it do much dredging of ditches and streams?’

@ Jerry Owen
You seem even more angry than usual. I suppose as one who spent a portion of his life supporting the rag bag opportunist scum. Although not realising it at the time. Makes one feel those wasted years more intensely.
But like I said, its not about to change any time soon. Lets call it the Al Thomas syndrome.. I'm all right me ducks.

re: "Funny that he didn’t mention that (for instance) first-time cannabis offenders form a tiny proportion of prisoners in the US... recently dismissed as a ‘myth’ the claim that the USA’s prisons are full of people convicted for marijuana possession."

Prohibitionist weaseling - if that were the case, then why does the police state lobby (and associated drug war camp followers) fight by hook or crook to maintain the cannabis arrest laws?

Police state lobbyists and their cheerleaders know well that when cannabis prohibition falls, much of the excuse for their police state is rubbished, like unto it. Cannabis prohibition (arrests, seizures etc) are the linchpin of the U.S. police state. When cannabis prohibition goes away, so does the reason for existence go for about half of the budgets for local, state and federal police (in the US).

That's why prohibitionists are careful to weasel that, 'we must keep arresting people for pot because hey, what's the problem: only a few white women are in Federal prison due solely to cannabis possession.' Or some such rubbish. (And this is why we must always continue to keep laws on the books that let police profit from cannabis arrests - because, you see, so very few are in jail. Or, we've not yet begun to fight. Or, ... what was it that Cornwallis said at Yorktown?)

It is as fundamentally unrighteous to arrest and jail an adult simply for taking (or selling or growing) cannabis, as it would be to arrest and jail them for alcohol. Such laws should be repealed immediately.

Mikebarnes.I just love the bit about Mr Pickles and Mr Prescott at an all you can eat buffet.In fact I can just imagine the look on an Indian restaurant owners face as Mr Pickles walks through the door of an Indian restaurant that is offering an all you can eat buffet.

mikebarnes
If this national disaster which is not only wreaking havoc on peoples homes and vehicles but their lively hoods and health due to the enormous risk of fatal disease ( especially for the old and weak) was happening in a far away country aid would be coming from all quarters of the world. We would see military planes delivering the necessary tools for survival and we would see helicopters flying in with those enormous nets laden with food, water, medical supplies, protective waterproof clothing, sand bags and I would like to think thousands of tubes of mastic clearly a better way to seal your front door ( yes you would have to modify a window for entry and exit ).
What do we see? A haphazard half hearted attempt at pretending to help from the authorities. A woefully short supply of sand bags, toy town dingies and wheelbarrows, mainly from the residents themselves. We are told that two thousand soldiers are now helping out...wow! does that equate to one soldier per village or town? We also have the absurd and perverse decision to get prisoners to help, yeah! prisoners helping themselves to property in vacated premises more like!
What I would expect to see is every stretch of water teeming with regular boat transportation rather like a bus service so people can get to work and shops, regular police patrols for the apprehension of the thieving underclasses, makeshift barracks and medical centres etc. In short the usual paraphernalia in such events as this in other parts of the world.
Rumour has it that the EA wasn't bothered about Somerset as clearly it isn't the hub of left wing multicultural society they love. The irony is that the greens in the EA that prefer animals to humans have destroyed more wildlife that even the most rabid pro hunter could ever dream off killing.
This disaster will happen again as the ideology of the EA is driven by straight jacket dogma, and because all of our institutions are run by like minded people, they will not and cannot learn from this disaster.

@ Jerry Owen
Our political elites are now out in strength .bagging photo opportunities with a relish like, Mr Pickles and Mr Prescott at an all you can eat buffet. Even Harry and Wills lugging sand bags, at least whilst the cameras were watching . Perhaps I'm being a tad harsh on them .At least they actually touch a sand bag rather than pose on one.
But new money is promised, to fix a problem that money alone cannot fix .
A Enviromental Agency not fit for purpose, Like all government agencies Whilst Foreign Aid is flushed down another never ending toilet.
I guess a lot of Millionaires with the river at the bottom of their garden getting help from their mates in government . A bit socialist . But the rich protecting their floodable properties. is not rocket science .And probably tax deductible as well . Leaving money directed where it should be. Even then living in historical wetlands was / is a daft thing to do . But escape from our nightmarish Metropolis's made it so as well.
Forward ten years Much of the same I guess. Voting is a very grave responsibility. But hey no problem. It all stitched up with the Postal vote.

@ Mr Thomas
Where in the majority of your posts does logic come into it . In this thread perhaps it does .But on the whole logic and Al Thomas are strange bedfellows. Mr Thomas's views what ever they may be . And the views of others clash. No Introspection there .You just line up the cross hairs and squeeze the trigger. A tad military I know .but that's my bag, so I express it that way .
You wish to kill off those who have the temerity to support a Party or Parties you do not..

"... that appears to me to show our political elites complete disregard and loathing for its own citizens."

This sounded so much like Bob, son of... in full flow that I had to check the name at the bottom.
I'm reasonably certain that any non-political 'inquest' into the floods will reveal considerable 'disregard'; quite how you identify the 'hatred' - clearly embedded in so many of Bob's posts - remains a matter of guesswork.

This column's 'I told you so' department.
Could we have your further thoughts on the 'national flood disaster' ,that appears to me to show our political elites complete disregard and loathing for it's own citizens.

It does seem logical to me to speak to a teacher on the subject of teaching practice. Of course, as my phone bill remains the same irrespective of the calls I make, I could - I suppose - have spoken to several dozen plumbers, electricians or even BNP ex-mercenaries. But as it happens, I only know one working teacher.

@ Mr Thomas.
Like the preverbial pit bull. Just cannot let go. I always tend to express my views on a subject from MY perspective. I tend not to use information gleaned from others. Not always
But here we have a guy, yourself who over time hasn't joined in the thread, but snipes and pick at others .
,Now you have joined the debate ,but with a possee. I think I'd prefer the old Thomas. This makes it all so complicated. And you phone bill going through the roof . I'm really concerned old fella.

As it is revealed today that NHS bosses allowed the world’s biggest drugs firms’ lobbying company to draft a report shaping our future health policy, we must consider the very real danger of the abuse of mental health for profit.

In 2005 the FDA issued an extraordinary “Public Health Advisory”, that cautioned about the risks associated with the whole new generation of antidepressants including Prozac and its knock offs, Zoloft, Paxil, Luvox, Celexa, and Lexapro, as well as Wellbutrin, Effexor, Serzone, and Remeron. The warning followed a public hearing where dozens of family members and victims testified of increased violence and suicide after their use.

Despite this, and research studies showing anti-depressants were only slightly more effective than a placebo, and this beneficial affect could be due to, research and conferences being funded by the drug companies, research methods design to show advantages, and positive effects being published more than negative ones;in 2007, there were 34 million prescriptions for anti-depressants., more than 40 million people are estimated to have taken Prozac since 1988.

Experts know little of how our brains work, and even less as to how drugs affect this working. And therefore rsearchers know very little about how antidepressants work. the huge flaw in their research is, that there is no test that can measure the amount of serotonin in a living brain. So they do not know what is a low or normal level of serotonin in a normal brain, so are working blind with adjustments by medication..
In any event there is no conclusive evidence that depression is caused by a serotonin shortage per se, as many studies contradict this theory of depression .And obviously, particularly in today’s desperate times, it may not be pathological..

Children and adult mental health services and other NHS mental health treatments consistt of therapy and/or medication. But the effectiveness of such treatments is not known, and is not monitored, and there are no scientific controls, so no means of judging the adequacy of services, and drugs which costs billions.

So this multibillion pound industry have ever increasing service users, voluntary and enforced, under the threats of care orders on parents if under 16, and then under the Mental Capacity Act 2005.

The MCA allows the state to enforce medication on effectively anyone, they deem needs it, it has a frighteningly vague and expansive definition of incompetency.. Recent government money being spent to place mental assessors in police stations.
.
Worse still The Medicines for Human Use (Clinical Trials) Regulations 2004, which regulates the conduct of clinical trials on medicinal products, allows a legal representative (a person not connected with the conduct of the trial) to consent to the participation of incompetent adults in medical research and currently, very little is known about how such representatives will make their decisions.

So it appears those deemed ‘incompetent’ under the MCA can be used as guinea pigs by profit hungry drug companies without their consent..

Exactly, but as a teacher he (or she) might say exactly the same about Bob's views. That is why I sought the views of a teacher with 10 years in a management role and15 years in teaching. Bob, to my knowledge has never confirmed that he was/is a teacher. He might be a school inspector (if they still exist) or he might, indeed, be a brain wiring technician.

I do know he's a fan of Nick Griffin, and extraordinarily keen on percentages. What I don't know is whether he is always delighted by support from you...

@ Mr Thomas .
ruffled your feathers did I. All I was doing was covering my back. As I was not present during that " Alleged " conversation .I must take it as read must I. Alleged is not the same as lied. And I would never use such language unless I knew it were such.
I mean I could phone up chaps to trump your imaginations as to what BNP supports are l, what they look like and so on . But I fear you are to far gone in that direction none of us really know.
I also get the feeling .although there is a national curriculum. If some schools fare better than others, it is because they do not slavishly follow said curriculum. So in your alleged conversation with an alleged expert. Unless he is an expert on every school in England . His views carry no more weight than Bobs. Who allegedly knows what he is talking about.

That would be almost as daft as me alleging that you only support Mr Bob because he too is a BNP supporter...

As my direct knowledge of methods of education is some 60 years distant, and my indirect knowledge (as a parent) about half as distant, why on earth should I engage in guesswork when a phone call can help me check out current practice in respect of Bob's statements.

However, now that another of your regular supporters is stating (ranting?) that the only solution is 'a nationalist government' (this being, presumably, following the looming revolution), I imagine your day has, indeed, been made merry.

The BNP gang have almost turned up in full strength!
Sorry about that slip into old habits, Bob, I'm afraid it's the usual case of flies and horses...

@ Dave S. No, your Grandson doesn't need tuition. This is the one fault with Grammar schools that is now trying to be dealt with by a change in the 11+. Children from well off families were being given tuition to within an inch of their lives to pass a test and then struggling once they entered Grammar school because they were expected to be bright. All you need to do is download a couple of tests to show your grandson what they will tested on. My son had no tuition. He is naturally bright, already two years ahead of his class. We put no pressure on him , he just loves learning. If he struggled to reach the required level then I'm not sure I would put him in a Grammar school as a struggling child would not be a happy child. I know it's wrong to live through your child but I'm so excited for my son to have a chance to be what he can it will make up for me maybe not being what I could have.

@ Mr Thomas
You used an alleged telephone conversation to refute bobs assertions. That's trumping or trying to trump anothers argument , And yes parents are part of both the problem and part of the cure.
In the USA ,PTA is still high on agendas, here its mostly open evenings, not quite the same .
@ Ian Spriggs
What is not to understand, international laws are humbug ,unless they have teeth . Bigger teeth that those seen to be flouting those laws.
Israel used force . So what, peace can only be guaranteed If the Gods of war say so . Power is everything .
What ever Israel wants is theirs until it is wrenched from their hands. Thats politics in its purest form .All other views are mere kant.

Anony Mouse "The "reason" people on antidepressants commit suicide (usually a few weeks after they've started treatment) is because they finally have the ENERGY to do so."

That is not true, I have personally witnessed family members complaining the anti depressants have made them feel suicidal within 48 hours of first taking them. Nothing to do with energy levels. It rather has something to do with the serotonin receptors in the brain, in some people anti depressants actually seem to shut down serotonin production, when they are supposed to increase it.

"A new study has just found that antidepressants are actually decreasing the amount of serotonin in many patients' brains, instead of increasing it as they are meant to."

The plain truth is that the rich and comfortable, the liberal elite, don't want the sons and daughters of the workers, the anonymous masses to whom they attach about as much value as farmers do to horses, most likely less value, to be properly educated . They never have done - for generations illiteracy successfully kept the poor "in their place", but this didn't quite work by the late-20th century so "modern'' teaching methods and comprehensive education had to be introduced. Simple as.

The very system whose ostensible purpose is to educate has been subverted from the top-down to dis-educate the poor, or at least ensure ignorance, or at least ensure that they are at a competitive disvantage compared to the Tarquins and Tristrams of this world.

Thus a successful recipe was devised to blight the education and life-chances of the capable poor:

Mixed-sex classes so boys and girls would be distracted from learning during their most hormonally-charged years, and maybe even produce a baby or two - check !

Remove the ability of teachers to impose any form of discipline in the classroom and create disordered learning environments-check!

Remove selection so that the most able are slowed down by the rest (as well as by the chaotic, disordered environment) -check!

Encourage lots of trendy group-work and collaborative seating arrangements so that pupils spend most of their time gossiping / mouthing off rather than learning -check!

Promote a dead bureaucratic, check-list approach to learning rather than an imaginitive, natural, inspired one. Lots of project-writing about craft rather than doing craft, lots of tests and pieces of paper, despite the absence of actual knowledge-check!

'Academic’ education policies, with their constant need to reinvent the wheel to appear innovative, and too large curriculi, have been the reason why our primary school children fell behind in reading and maths.

From a frustrated mother’s experience, reading methods went from the tried and tested phonetics, and the common word repetition of the Peter and Jane, and Janet and John books, to those with two sentences on a page, words rarely repeated, use of politically correct Asian names, often unfamiliar and unreadable, and just for completeness ‘kaleidoscope', or such other long, unusual word thrown in, so that a 6 year old reader, lost confidence, interest, and fluidity, and failed to pick up the basic words that kick start reading..

Maths- my daughter learnt far too many methods to do the same thing, but not the single simple methods, I was taught, her teacher said they were too complicated.- a recipe for confusion, loss of confidence and disengagement.

All this has resulted from too many 'academic ' educators feeling the need to justify their position, and weld their 'expert' power by their latest innovation, over the poor teachers, who are forced by a very prescribed system, to cope with all this innovation, increased class sizes, political correctness, personal development teaching et al .

Worry not, I'm sure normal service will shortly be resumed - particularly if brain wiring and pittbulls crop up again.

The practice described by the teacher involved is based on what is currently happening in the school in question. The practice that involves preparing year six for secondary education right up to the last week of summer term has been standard in that school for several years. One more recent practice, possibly a local initiative, has been to allocate the 'tougher' teachers to entry year and year six classes in an attempt to nip behavioural problems in the bud and to prepare leavers for the next school.

I didn't raise the question of the 'red dots'... it seemed a very minor issue.

On final thought: now that the working habits of teachers are frequently open to public examination, do you not feel it is time to monitor and make public the level of parental support in a like fashion? Yes, I know it's a tricky one as some might think it's the teachers passing the buck, but it is a major issue. Parents detention night, perhaps?

Ian Spriggs, 10 February, wrote,''While the Old Testament may contain some echoes of historical truth, it is not a reliable source for presenting an historical point of view.''

That's rather a bold statement, Mr. Spriggs; upon what evidence do you base such an assertion? Much of the archeological evidence that I'm aware of, certainly with regard to history of Israel, does not contradict the biblical record.

Mike Barnes: While the Old Testament may contain some echoes of historical truth, it is not a reliable source for presenting an historical point of view. In the remainder of your argument you appear to acknowledge that the Jewish state in Palestine has internationally binding and recognised legal legitimacy, but that this is delegitimised by Israel’s use of force to defend their legitimate rights – I’m afraid I cannot make any sense of this argument.

John Edwards:

‘Sodastream...is based in an illegal settlement in the Occupied Palestinian Territories’

I have heard this ‘illegal’ description on so many occasions that the truth of the assertion seems taken for granted by mere repetition alone. However, what I have never heard (but would be much interested to) is the following:

1. name the law
2. describe the provisions of that law
3. demonstrate how the situation on the ground falls within those provisions

And as a fourth point: even if you can demonstrate points 1-3 above, you also need to show how this takes precedence over the League of Nations Mandate for Palestine which guarantees Jewish rights to settle anywhere from the River Jordan to the Mediterranean Sea.

I fear you failed to spot my use of 'difference' in respect of my comments to Bob - leading to your somewhat infantile use of 'trumps your source'.

Yes, far too many kids are failing to leave school with the basics of education. I've no idea of the numbers involved, but my guess would be that it's in a similar ballpark figure occupied by the number of parents who leave teachers to carry out basic parenting duties. A very different problem, but hardly unconnected.

And, in any case, would you not agree that solutions to problems are best sought in a climate where facts are both well-researched and accurately reported. Which is one reason I left the matter open to other comments. Comments, hopefully, more sensible than your own.

Alan Thomas – first of all, congratulations on managing to write a post that is relevant to the blog and is completely free of name-calling. Or maybe you are a different poster, and the other one will pop up any minute with some personal abuse. (Described by another as “your posts are 'sniper' posts only with no conversational value”)

Anyway, as for your statement issued by your primary teacher contact – this statement is just an official policy statement – I am referring to what actually happens in practice.

Please ask your contact if the policy of no longer writing red crosses on children’s work in primary schools (crosses now to be replaced by a dot) was implemented at the start of this term in London. I am interested to know if this was coordinated nationwide or just applied to Manchester schools.

“All Maths exams still involve 'hand-marking' by teachers, with comments on English usage where written answers are involved."

To clarify - I know this and I wrote in the previous blog below (the blog about Michael Gove) how Michael Gove could significantly reduce the admin workload of teachers by the removal from these tests of the type of questions that require a written sentence for the answer. And take out open-ended questions too, such as ‘write a multiple of 7’ for which there is not a single answer. These simple changes would significantly reduce the workload of the teachers, without in any way diminishing the effectiveness of the tests.

A maths test without sentence answers and without open ended questions would still give the same ranking of pupils – ie the top ones would still be top, the middle ones still middle, and so on. And it could assess the maths level of a child *just as accurately* as the current tests do – and assess exactly the same topics. In fact I have proved this by rewriting a 28-odd page KS2 maths test myself and ending up with an equivalent test six pages long with no open ended or sentence answers.

Also, think of the paper saved, if 28 page tests were replaced by six-page tests. The old 11 Plus maths tests consisted of a single sheet. Before that, they used an official maths test (not an entrance exam, a sort of equivalent to SATs) that was so short it was written on the blackboard.

As for non open-ended tests taking .2 seconds to mark, I was referring to a test where the answers are written on a tablet device not on paper. I was saying this method *could be* used, not *is* used.

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